Critical Perspectives on Israel/Palestine: Diplomacy, Poetry, and the Druze Experience
- Pacific Time Virtual Program
Critical Perspectives on Israel & Palestine is a five-part series that invites participants into serious, pluralistic engagement with sharply different analyses and visions for the future of Israel/Palestine. We'll also examine the moral and political frameworks that shape those visions.
In each session, we feature a scholar, organizer, or public leader offering a distinct critical lens—followed by moderated conversation and public Q&A. The goal isn't consensus. It's clarity: hearing arguments on their own terms, understanding what's at stake, and sharpening our ability to think and speak with rigor in a time of polarization.
This session: Reda Mansour
Reda Mansour is an Israeli Druze diplomat, poet, and historian who has served in Israel's foreign service in senior roles, including ambassador to Brazil, Panama, and Ecuador, and in U.S. consular leadership posts, including in San Francisco. Appointed an ambassador at 35, he was among the youngest in Israel's history and the first Druze career diplomat. He is also the first non-Jewish poet in Israel to write exclusively in Hebrew, with four published collections and a Ha'aretz Short Story Award. In this session, Mansour brings a dual lens to Israel/Palestine and the region: how diplomacy frames interests and legitimacy, and how minority communities—particularly Druze communities with deep cross-border ties—experience conflict, instability, and the search for safety, particularly after the seismic shifts of October 7, 2023, and the tragic anti-Druze attacks in Syria this past July.
Who this is for: Anyone seeking a serious, pluralistic exploration of Israel/Palestine—students, educators, organizers, and community members ready to engage difficult questions, encounter disagreement, and think critically about what they hear. No prior expertise is required.
What you'll leave with: Clearer insight into the debates and choices shaping Israel/Palestine today, exposure to a sharply defined political framework on its own terms, and sharper tools for critical, informed engagement—in study, dialogue, and public life.
You may be interested in other sessions in this series:
| Date | Speaker(s) | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| January 26 | Hadar Susskind | New Jewish Narrative: Diaspora-grounded political lens on peace, security, and justice |
| February 1 | Reda Mansour | Diplomacy, Poetry, and the Druze Perspective |
| February 8 | MK Aïda Touma-Sliman | Activism and Feminist Organizing among Palestinian Citizens of Israel |
| February 22 | Rula Daood & Nadav Shofet | Standing Together: Jewish-Palestinian grassroots organizing against occupation and for shared futures |
| Daniel Boyarin | On The No-State Solution: recovering Jewish peoplehood beyond the nation-state |
- Format: brief introduction to our guests, ~60 minutes of moderated conversation, and ~25–30 minutes of participant Q&A
- Recording: this session will be recorded. Access to the recording will be available separately (details to follow).
- Conversation norms: we welcome disagreement and will moderate to keep the conversation rigorous and respectful. Q&A is for concise, good-faith questions; personal attacks, dehumanizing language, or advocacy of harm will be moderated.
Register to join the live session—and be part of the conversation.
How many people would you like to register for this program?
| Critical Perspectives: Reda Mansour | $18.00 47 available | |
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